Kids & Careers!
Who would you like to meet? • James: a firefighter engineer • Ian: a provincial police officer • Scott: a county police officer • Sean: a city planner • Dave: a senior software engineer • Kathy: a customs manager • Rosie: an international sales manager • David: a process engineer • Drew: a school department head • John: a director of computer services • Steve: a paramedic • Amy: a physical therapist Kidsnewsroom would like you to meet James! Below are the questions (Q.)we asked about his career and the answers (A.) he gave us! Q. How old are you? A. I'm 36. Q. In what city do you work? A. I work in Wilson, North Carolina, in the USA. Q. What type of company do you work for? A. It's not really a company. I work for the Fire Department. Q. What is your job title? A. I'm a firefighter engineer. Q. At what times does your work day begin and end? A. I start at exactly 8:00 in the morning and work for 24 hours until 8:00 the next morning. If we get a call early or late, then sometimes I work overtime. Q. How many days per week do you work? A. Usually 3. I'm on what is called a swing shift. I work one day, then I'm off for a day. Then I work, then I'm off. Again, I work a day, then I'm off a day. Then, I get a break where I'm off for four days in a row. Then it starts all over again! Q. What is your office like? A. It's not really an office. I work in a fire station, so it's a building that is shared between all of the firefighters. Q. What kind of clothes do you wear to work? A. We wear a blue work uniform. We also have a dress uniform that is worn for special occasions such as funerals, promotions, graduations, and things like that. Q. Who do you work with? A. I work with a team of other people, the other firefighters. Q. Tell us about your education and how it has prepared you for this job. A. I have a high school degree. Prior to working here, I did not attend college, but now I take classes within the fire department that give me college credits. We do a lot of training together. Q. What should a kid do NOW to prepare for your kind of job in the future? A. Learn as much as you can about everything, because in our line of work, we meet all types of people. You never know when you may need a special skill or knowledge that you have learned in school or in life. Q. Do you have any other advice for kids who are thinking about having your type of career? A. My job is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. It takes a special person to risk his or her own life for someone else. It's not the best paying job, but when you save someone's life and property with the help of God it's priceless. It's really not a job; it's a career. Q. What skills or subjects are important to your job? A. Just about everything, including chemistry, math, physical fitness, spelling, speech, communication, history, social skills, geography and computers. Q. What are the top ten things that you normally do at work each day? A. 1. Checking out the firefighting equipment to make sure everything works and is ready for use at an emergency. 2. Doing physical fitness training to stay strong and in shape. 3. Participating in classroom training to learn more about my job. 4. Washing the trucks. 5. Responding to emergency fire and medical calls. 6. Inspecting businesses in the area to find fire hazards and learn where hydrants are. 7. Giving station tours to kids. 8. Checking the community for fire line violations. 9. Doing yard maintenance around the fire station, like cutting the grass. 10. Educating the public about fire safety. Thanks, James! It was nice getting to know you!